With the growth of the data center and connectivity industry, there has been an ever-expanding need for telecommunications and electrical infrastructure talent and services. Hylan, an influential name in the space, offers a vast array of services across wireline, wireless and smart city municipal segments in a growing geographic footprint. Founded as Hylan Datacom & Electrical approximately 60 years ago in New York City, the company rechristened as Hylan now serves multiple markets throughout the U.S., with offices and facilities located in New York City, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Chicago, Phoenix, Texas, Utah and Virginia.
In 2018, Hylan partnered with Flexis capital and TZP capital partners to strategically expand the firm’s nationwide operations. To date, Hylan has acquired four companies—Arcturus Telecom (an engineering company), Down Under Construction (the greater Washington D.C. area), Western Utility (greater Chicago area) and Hylan West (Arizona, California, Utah). All of these companies, plus the original Hylan Datacom & Electrical, are now under the eponymous parent brand. “This was a major move for our team,” Robert elaborated. “These acquisitions allow Hylan to extend our reach and expand our existing services”. The services include communications and electrical infrastructure design, DAS and small cell installations, engineering, construction and maintenance services and more. “Hylan offers turnkey solutions to the entire communication and electrical infrastructure industry, positioning us as strong leaders in markets across the U.S.”
THE HYLAN HERITAGE
Hylan’s 60-year legacy is an attestation of its strength and success in the electrical contracting market as it became one of the leading turnkey communications solutions and electrical infrastructure design and construction services providers in the nation. In 1960, John DiLeo, Sr. (father of Robert DiLeo and Hylan Datacom & Electrical President, John DeLeo, Jr.) incepted Hylan Datacom & Electrical as a family-owned commercial electrical contractor. The company was founded out of a hardware store on Hylan Boulevard in Staten Island, New York, and became an IBEW Local 3 contractor in the 1970s. By the mid-1980s, the company grew to enlist wireline services for the major cable companies. At the time, there weren’t many companies providing these services, allowing Hylan to grow exponentially.
Hylan Datacom & Electrical’s position within the telecommunications space broadened as it approached the 1990s and started work on several fiber optic installations on behalf of major network operators. In 2007, the company constructed its first DAS system, advancing its way into the wireless business. It serves as a major mobile operator to transform prevailing wireless infrastructure to meet next-generation 5G standards. By working with top carriers, Hylan helped upgrade existing deployments. The company also spends ample time installing small cell towers for its customers, which complement the larger ones.
STRONG FAMILY TIES AND VALUES
An unwavering and consistent alliance, which holds Robert’s precedence, ascertains that everyone who works on the Hylan team feels like family. “With the expansions came new talent, and we are proud that our employee strength has increased remarkably,” he adds. “We are one big family here at Hylan, and one of our biggest focuses for 2019 is to ensure that the new team members across all Hylan companies feel that camaraderie and appreciation. In turn, we’d want our team to extend that same respect to all of our customers and partners as well.”
One of the inspiring initiatives that Hylan launched in 2019 was its ‘Get to Know Our Hylan Family’ blog series. Just as the name suggests, it highlights various team members and spends some time getting to know them and the work they do. This also allows Hylan to educate its patrons, partners and prospects about the company’s overall work ethics, services and locations. Empowering its customers with this type of helpful information is key for the brand as much as it is to have a “never say no” attitude when serving them. “If our customer needs a particular project done, we’ve got to figure out how to best—and most quickly—get it done for them.”
THE ROAD AHEAD
With initiatives like smart cities, 5G, IoT and other next-gen technologies, Hylan is well-positioned to benefit from the considerable demand for its turnkey services. To further accelerate this growth strategy, additional expansion is planned for 2019 and beyond. Companies with strong leadership, great customer relationships and a strong sense of family form a potential acquision target. “We are actively looking at most major U.S. cities, and particularly interested in Atlanta, Boston and the Florida area,” revealed Robert. “It’s also important where our clients have their biggest pain points. If some of our clients say that they’re really struggling in Atlanta, we will look for a target there to acquire and add to our family.”
THE LIFESTYLE ASPECT
In professional as much as in personal life, family means everything to Robert. He spends his spare time with his wife and two children. He also enjoys golf and travel.